Charles Barkley

Charles "Chuck" Barkley (20 February 1963-) was an American basketball player and analyst. Born in Leeds, Alabama, he was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers from Auburn University in 1984, and he went on to make eleven NBA All-Star Game appearances, being named an All-Star MVP in 1991. In 1993, with the Phoenix Suns, he was rated the league's MVP, and he competed in the 1992 and 1996 Olympics as a member of the United States' "Dream Team". He was known to be a fighter, accidentally spitting on a young girl in March 1991 while trying to spit on a heckler, and declaring in 1993 that sports players should not be seen as role models. In 2000, he retired from the sport after four years with the Houston Rockets, and he became a popular analyst. Barkley was a prominent Republican athlete, considering running for Governor of Alabama in 1998. In 2006, he announced that he was a Republican "until they lost their minds", and he supported Barack Obama in 2008. That same year, he announced that he would run for Governor of Alabama as an independent in 2014, but he dropped out of the race in 2010. In 2015, he announced his support for the Republican presidential candidate John Kasich during the 2016 presidential election. Before and after Donald Trump's election, Barkley criticized him, and he supported Doug Jones in the 2017 US Senate election in Alabama.